What Lies Behind the Smile?
by Jish
Summary: Mac, now twelve years old, lives in an abusive household. When his mother finds something he was hiding, things take a turn for the worse. RATED M FOR DARK THEMES. Complete.
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: I do not in ANY WAY own Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends**

**Warning: This story includes physical and emotional abuse of a young teen. **

**A/N: I had to write this after I started rewatching the show. This is not a slash story.**

**Also, please review!**

**What Lies Behind the Smile? (Chapter 1)-Prologue**

"Shut the fuck up! You're just a little bitch!" My mom shouts at her husband of two years, my stepfather, in her drunken and slurred voice.

There they go again. He gets up and starts to yell at her. She yells at him to leave her alone, and then starts throwing everything in her sight onto the floor. I can hear her spitting on the walls, trying to get him but obviously failing.

"Sick cunt!" He yells and goes back to their room.

"That right. You don't mess with the me! Ass-hoe! Woo!" My mom shouts at the top of her lungs, forgetting that I'm here.

Hello. My name is Mac Kazoo and I am twelve years old.

This is what I go through when I am at home on a daily basis. This is a good day; it's only arguing for the most part. On a bad day, she starts hitting him and then he fights back. Once she even called the police and left our house just to get him in trouble even though he was only trying to sleep, all while I was trying to get my homework done.

"Screw this. I'm out of here." I mumble to myself. I open my door, and I can tell they're both in their room, still arguing. I grab my key to Foster's and my cell phone, which I paid for myself through saving my gifts from family, and head out the door.

This has been going on for about a year and a half. I have been forced to grow up much quicker than I should have. It's not easy being a gay eighth-grader in an abusive house-hold who still has to hide the fact that he visits his imaginary friend after school from his parents.

Wait, you didn't know. Oh yeah, right. I haven't told anyone yet, except for my group at Foster's. I'm gay. My parents don't know, and I pray to God that they don't find out.

I start walking to Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends. I'm fortunate that Bloo doesn't live with me anymore. If he did, he would be getting abused as well. There's no way I would be able to put him through that.

But Bloo doesn't even know this is happening. I have to pretend that everything is all right. It's not the Imaginary Friend's job to worry about the creator. The creator is supposed to worry about the friend.

I soon get to Foster's and the lights are unsurprisingly off. I put my key into the door, and turn it quietly so I don't accidentally wake someone up.

I walk in, open my phone as a light, and I lock the door behind me. I decide to do some homework. I do my homework here now, since that time my mother called the police that one night. It's Friday night, and I don't have anything due until the last class on Wednesday. That project is already finished, so I begin to work on my Spanish project. I go to my study room, which is really just an empty closet with a light in it.

It's not that late. It's only 10:00 and I get most of the project done in only a half hour. That's the good thing about doing homework at Foster's at night. Nobody knows I'm here because they're sleeping, so nobody can bother me while I work.

I decide to go home now. I'll take my shower now and I'll just wake up early tomorrow. If I wake up early tomorrow, I get to go to sleep earlier so I don't have to sit through their fighting.

I put all my homework away and go home. I can't hear any yelling through the walls, so maybe my stepfather is finally sleeping. I open the door and I can hear my mom's drunken voice as she sings loudly while listening to her mp3 player.

I go to my room, setting my phone on the bed and my glasses and key on the stand next to my door. I grab underwear, sweatpants, and a shirt for when I'm done.

I then walk to the closet, grab a large towel and a small towel, and head to the bathroom. I get undressed, looking at my naked body in the mirror.

The bruises have since vanished. They weren't that large because she hasn't thrown too large of objects at me. It's been a while, but they have finally vanished. I take a moment and rub my chest.

Then I look at my penis. Things would be a bit easier if I didn't have this. Being gay is just the icing of the cake that is my fucked up life. If I was a girl, at least I would be a straight girl. A tomboy yes, but still a straight girl. (Just to be clear, I don't mind being gay. It's just more difficult.)

How I wish I didn't have to deal with this. I thought I was a good person. I don't think that I deserve any of this. I walk into the shower, turn on the hot water, and quickly get out so it can warm up.

I start thinking about things. I wonder how my friends at Foster's would react if they found out about this abuse. Bloo would want to get revenge, Eduardo would cry, Wilt would apologize and ask if I was alright, and Coco would lay a few tens of eggs out of surprise. They would probably tell Frankie and Mr. Herriman. I don't want to think about what would happen next.

Once the water is warm enough, I step in and turn on the cold to keep the temperature at bay. I start to wash my body, which is just starting puberty. I wash my arms, my legs, and my hairless chest. I rinse under the water, which has become a bit cold but still nice. I notice my nipples have become hard. I rub them a little and stifle a moan.

I continue to wash myself, saving my penis and my butt for last. I am a bit of a hygienic freak, so I give special attention to those areas. Once that's done, I wash my long, brown hair. Because I usually take my showers in the morning, I sometimes have to skip washing my hair so I'm not late to school. It feels good to have clean hair.

I turn the water off and I step out of the shower. I dry myself off, surprisingly not needing the small towel like I almost always do for my eyes. Once dry, I look at the mirror. I can see a small gleam of light from a left-over drop on my chest. I wipe it off, and get dressed. I brush my hair, leaving a small curl at the front and smile when it's perfect. I walk to my room and see my mother there, my phone in one hand and a knife in the other. I notice a belt next to her.

"H-hello." I say, scared about of my mind that she's going to attack me. "Where's dad?"

"He went out to get a whore and not feed me." She raises the knife up as if she's going to throw it at me. "Explain this!" She screams and throws my phone near my crotch, narrowly missing it. I unlock it and see that my journal is open. It's the one where I confessed that I was gay. It was written a few months ago, before I completely accepted myself.

"You're a faggot! You're really a little homo. I can't believe it, Mac. You're a fucking faggot that likes to take it up the cornhole!" She screams at me and throws the knife at me. I almost dodge it; it scrapes my arm. I'm too scared to notice.

I put my phone in my sweatpants' pocket. She looks at me again, grabbing the belt. She whips my head with it, and I grab my head. She whips my legs all over, and I fall. She whips my stomach. She whips my back. Out of desperation and fear, I cover my crotch in case she decides to whip there too. She does, but she only hits my hand. She whips my head a few more times before wrapping the belt around my neck and kicking my in the side. She laughs and walks out.

I quickly unwrap the belt from my neck and stand up. I limp over to my key and glasses. I put my glasses on and put the key in my pocket. I quickly put socks and then my shoes on. I grab my house key and stuff it with the other key. I grab my sweater and run out the house door as fast as I could, which isn't that fast with all these injuries.

I don't stop running. I run to Foster's. Halfway there, my body feels numb. I can feel blood in my hair, on my legs, arms, back, chest, and hands. I make it to Foster's, and I open the door. I lock the door, and I fall to the ground. I take my phone out and look at the time. 12:00 AM. Nobody will know I'm here for another six hours at least.

I try to get up, but my legs give way. With all my energy, I am able to shout one word a few times.

Help.

Nobody comes to my rescue.

"Help, help, help…" I say quietly to myself, no longer able to scream. I soon slip away into unconsciousness.

I hope I'm only sleeping.

**A/N: How was this first chapter? I don't think it was that good, but I think the story will get better. I know what I'm going to write next. Also, don't forget to review!**


	2. That's Who I Am

**Disclaimer: I do not in ANY WAY own Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends**

**Warning: This story includes physical and emotional abuse of a young teen. **

**A/N: So, this story is not a slash story. This story is about how the main character is getting abused at home for being who he is.**

**Also, please review!**

I don't stop running. I run to Foster's. Halfway there, my body feels numb. I can feel blood in my hair, on my legs, arms, back, chest, and hands. I make it to Foster's, and I open the door. I lock the door, and I fall to the ground. I take my phone out and look at the time. 12:00 AM. Nobody will know I'm here for another six hours at least.

I try to get up, but my legs give way. With all my energy, I am able to shout one word a few times.

Help.

Nobody comes to my rescue.

"Help, help, help…" I say quietly to myself, no longer able to scream. I soon slip away into unconsciousness.

I hope I'm only sleeping.

**What Lies Behind the Smile? (Chapter 2)-That's Who I Am**

"Uhh…" I say as I begin to slowly wake up, feeling immense pain all over my body, but especially in my head. I can faintly smell blood on the arm my head was on.

I lift my head; I see that I'm at Foster's. I start to recall the events of last night. The memories of their fighting, my homework, my shower, the whippings, the journey here, and the agony of feeling completely alone and helpless start to pour in my head.

I see my phone next to me. I pick it up and look at the time. 3:00 AM. So, I was asleep for three hours. What am I supposed to do now?

I can't just let everyone know what happened. They wouldn't understand. They wouldn't understand why my mother would almost kill me, just for being who I am.

They already know of my preference. They were happy for me. You see, imaginary friends aren't judgmental in the way humans are. Imaginary friends judge you on your character and not your look, voice, or sexual preference. Even Frankie, Madame Foster, and Mr. Herriman accept me. Why can't my own mother?

I don't give a crap of what my stepfather thinks of me. He's just a bum. But my mother used to be nice. But I hate her so much. And it's not because of this. I hate her because she's been a drunk for at least two years. Since then, I've hated her guts to much. I don't even care about her anymore.

But, I digress. It's 3:00 AM and I need to stop lying on the ground like a helpless animal. I struggle to get to my knees. Surprisingly, they don't hurt as much as any other part of my body (with the exception of my wisely protected crotch) does. I breath for a few seconds, gathering the strength to get to my feet. I need the handle of the front door to help steady myself.

Once I am on my feet, I start to walk extremely slowly to the stairs. They have since added a ramp for wheelchair accessibility, so I decide to walk up that instead of the stairs. It takes a while, but I finally make it to the floor with the showers on it.

I need to take a shower to wash off all this blood. I can hide the cuts and bruises because I am wearing long sweatpants and a long-sleeved shirt. The cuts wouldn't be able to be seen from my hair, so that's alright.

I walk up to the shower furthest from any room, to avoid waking anyone up. I get in the door, and I look around me. I see a soap dispenser (so imaginary friends don't share the same bar), a pile of large towels, a pile of small towels, and a bottle of dandruff shampoo (for any imaginary friend that may need it).

I once again get undressed and look at myself in the bathroom's mirror. The only part of my body that doesn't have any cuts or bruises is my crotch, which I only protected out of instinct. I still can't believe anyone would try to hurt someone in that area, especially their own mother. But she's not my mom anymore; she's just a drunk bitch.

And I don't curse in public. Only to myself. I learned these words from my wonderful household since my mom started drinking and they started fighting.

I step into the shower, and I slowly turn on the water. It doesn't take any time to warm up, and I can feel the water start to burn my skin. I need this. I need to wash this pain away. A few moments later, I quickly turn the cold water on and adjust the water to a cool temperature. I take two small towels from the pile, one for my body and one for my eyes. I put soap on one and start to slowly wash my body.

I rub the towel over my arms, wincing in pain at the sensation of the soap and towel rubbing over the sensitive and healing skin. I do the same to my legs, chest, and back. Once I rinse off, I take a look in the mirror inside. I look at my face.

I can't help but smile. I am still me. I am still Mac. Even though this may not be my best moment, I am still Mac Kazoo. I still have my imaginary friend of now nine years. I still have my friends from Foster's of five years. I still have my friends from school of different years. And I still have my name. Mac Kazoo. How I wish my real father was still alive. He was a great father; he wouldn't have let any of this happen.

I grab the shampoo and I lather up my hands. I slowly rub it into my hair, almost moaning at the pain so intense. I push through the pain, and I rinse my head. I look down at the water and I can see pink. The shampoo is white, and my blood is red. I must have been bleeding a lot, but it has fortunately stopped.

I rinse the last of the blood and soap off of my body, completely ignoring my hygienic nature and not washing my penis or my behind. I turn off the water and look into the mirror again. I just have to remember my name.

Mac Kazoo. That's who I am.

I step out of the shower, dry myself off, and get dressed. I make sure to wipe up any water drops on the ground and to put the towels in the bin. I put my glasses on and make sure both keys and my phone are in my pocket.

I head up to my study room and turn on the light. I am in no mood to do homework. I am in no mood to talk to anyone. I am in no mood to do anything.

I look at my phone and notice that it is now 4:30 AM. I need to come up with a plan of what I'm going to do.

I am not going back home, that's for sure. I can't stay here because nobody can know about what's going on. What am I going to do? I try to think of what I can do. But the only thing that comes to mind is Bloo.

Bloo. How he can cheer me up so well is beyond my comprehension. Maybe it's that bond between imaginary friends and the creator. Maybe that bond is so strong that he can just make me happy in a moment's notice.

I wish I could tell him. However, that's just not going to happen. He is too innocent to understand all of this. I think I'll know what to do, at least for today.

I'm going to hide outside the Foster's gate a few minutes before 6:00 AM and then go in a few minutes after. It'll seem that I'm just an hour earlier than I am on Saturdays.

But what am I going to do for an hour and a half. I decide to write in my journal.

"Dear Journal. Hey, it's Mac again. My mom found out that I'm gay and decided to whip me with a belt and throw a knife at me. The knife hit my shoulder, but the belt hit everywhere except my front. The wounds are already healing, and I am hiding them with long clothes. I don't know what I'm going to do tomorrow, but I'm going to stay at Foster's all day today. I just hope that nobody finds out about this." I say extremely softly to myself as I slowly type this into my journal.

I lay back for a few minutes. I look at the ceiling and remember the carving I made. Bloo has just jumped on me and we are both smiling. Ah, the good days, before all of this happened.

At 5:57 AM I go outside. The paper hits the door at 5:59 AM and I see Frankie come out at 6:02 AM. I wait a few minutes before unlocking the door and going in.

"Hello, Mac. You're here early today. Bloo should be waking up about now. He likes to get up early on Saturdays for you." Frankie tells me. I didn't know that Bloo gets ready for me. She then leaves the room, leaving me there for a few seconds to think over Bloo.

I decide to walk up to Bloo's shared room. I walk in quietly so I don't wake Eduardo, Wilt, or Coco. I hear Bloo in the bathroom. I decide to lay in Bloo's bed. I yawn. I close my eyes, thinking that Bloo will be out in a few minutes. I soon fall sleep, the last thing I hear being Bloo singing in the shower.

**A/N: So, I don't plan on this story being too long. This was not my original ending to the chapter, but I like this one a lot better than the original. Also, don't forget to review!**


	3. Out in the Open

**Disclaimer: I do not in ANY WAY own Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends**

**Warning: This story includes physical and emotional abuse of a young teen. **

**A/N: I'm not sure how far I should take this. The character is only twelve, but I don't know. He is a bit mature for his age here, though. **

**I believe I should now say I apologize for any inconsistencies that I may make. I write these far apart from each other, and I don't go back to check for every little detail. **

**Also, please review!**

I decide to walk up to Bloo's shared room. I walk in quietly so I don't wake Eduardo, Wilt, or Coco. I hear Bloo in the bathroom. I decide to lay in Bloo's bed. I yawn. I close my eyes, thinking that Bloo will be out in a few minutes. I soon fall asleep, the last thing I hear being Bloo singing in the shower.

**What Lies Behind the Smile? (Chapter 3)-Out in the Open**

**Saturday Morning-Bloo's P.O.V.**

Boy, showering sure is fun. You get to get all wet, play with the bubbles from the soap, and you get to sing and nobody critiques it!

I walk out of the bathroom and into my room. I look at my bed and I see someone. I go closer and I see Mac.

Mac? What's he doing here so early? Why does he look like he hasn't slept at all? I walk closer to him, and I see his face scrunched up like he was having a nightmare.

I grab his arm and shake him. His eyes shoot open and he grabs onto the pillow. He looks around for a second and sees me. He looks into my eyes, and he smiles.

**Mac's P.O.V.**

"_Stay away from me!" I well as I run away from my drunken mother, who is holding a very large knife._

"_Why? Don't you want this up your filthy cornhole?" She retaliates and continues to chase me through the halls of Foster's. Where are all the imaginary friends? Where're Frankie, Herriman, Bloo? Where's anyone?_

_I continue to run until I hit a dead end. I don't remember this being here. Mother catches up with me and I see her wicked smile. She raises her arm and_-

I gasp. I look around the room to see that I was only dreaming. I remember everything. I fell asleep in Bloo's bed while he was showering.

I look around the room, and I notice something on my arm. I look toward the source and I see Bloo. I look into his eyes, and I smile. He smiles back at me.

"Hello, sleepyhead. You look pretty tired. Sorry to wake you. You looked like you were having a bad dream. I'll let you sleep if you're still tired." Bloo says to me, smiling.

I am exhausted. I could really use some sleep, especially because I can't go home tonight, or ever again. I really don't want to (and can't) sleep on the streets; I am only twelve after all. What am I supposed to do?

On the plus side, all my school things are here. Everything from my white-out to my laptop is here. I am set to do homework here.

School aside, there are a few major issues. Where am I going to sleep? What am I going to eat? How am I going to bathe? Where am I going to live?

I can get some food at school, breakfast and lunch, for free like I always do. That's really not enough for a whole day, but I can survive on it if need be. I can sneak into Foster's every night like I did last night for both showers and sleep. However, I assume my _lovely_ mother will call the police because she is _so_ worried about me.

I really just want to live here at Foster's. I have great friends here. Frankie is like a big sister; Herriman and Madame Foster like parents. Bloo is actually my brother, only imaginary. My whole family is here.

"No, it's fine. I didn't get a lot of sleep; I was reading a lot." I say, hoping he buys my excuse.

"Oh, alright. So, what do you want to do?" Bloo asks me, smiling.

"I was kind of hoping for a somewhat lazy day today. I know it's Saturday, but I didn't get a lot of sleep. Sorry I made you get up for nothing, Bloo." I say, looking down. I really do feel bad for making him get up early for nothing. He puts his hand on my shoulder.

"Don't look so sad, Mac. I understand. You don't have to be upset. It happens. It's no biggie." He says, and I look at him. He is smiling at me, and I can't help feel that…

I don't deserve it at all.

I don't deserve this. I don't deserve his kindness. I deserve what happened to me last night, right? I totally did. I must have done something bad to deserve it, or it wouldn't have happened.

It's not because I'm gay. I know that. That's why my mother attacked me, but that's not why it happened to _me_. There has to be a reason.

Was I bad to my imaginary friend? Did I do something to someone to just deserve to be treated as if I was a piece of trash?

I am still only a child, for goodness' sake. I am only twelve years old. Twelve year olds should not be going through what I went through. Now, I am struggling to figure out where I am going to sleep. Twelve year olds should know where they could sleep.

"I know. I'm sorry." I pause for a second.

"I know, Bloo. Let's play that game we got last week." I say, and his face lights up even more.

"Race ya!" Bloo says and runs to the Rec. Room. I follow right behind him, and he is already turning the game on by the time I get there. He's gotten a lot faster over the years. How have I just noticed this?

Maybe I really am treating him badly.

We start playing the game, and I can hardly focus. I yawn about every 20-25 seconds, so my eyes are soon clouded with yawn-tears. And I'm still wondering what I'm going to do. But the only conclusion I could come up with is that nobody could know. At least, nobody can know right yet.

"Yeah!" Bloo shouts as he wins, knocking me out of my daze. He looks at me, and I am yawning once again.

"Geeze Mac, you must be more tired than you originally thought. Maybe you should take a nap." Bloo says, and I desperately want to accept.

I don't want to have another bad dream. I don't want to start shouting things in my sleep. I don't want to have to worry more when I wake up, because I know I'll probably be up all night looking for a place to find breakfast on Sunday morning.

But, I have to stay awake. If I go to sleep, even if it on the street, at least I will know where I would be. If I take a nap now, I won't really know where I would be. I would be lost if I sleep now.

"Bloo, I just need to do something to wake me up. I need to slash some water on my face." I say, and Bloo follows me to the bathroom. I run the cold water, and I splash my face a few times with freezing cold water. I reach for a towel, but there isn't one in my reach.

"Here." Bloo says and hands me one. I wipe my face, and I look into the mirror. What do I see this time?

I see a pathetic little boy.

Just a few hours ago I thought I was still me, just a little down. But now I feel awful. I feel like I am below humans. I feel like I am completely worthless. I frown. Bloo puts his hand on my shoulder. I turn my body to face him. He smiles, and he hugs me.

"Ah!" I scream and Bloo lets go of me. I gasp in pain, my bruised, abused body just now starting to heal the injuries.

"Mac?" Bloo asks, worried. I just take deep breaths, the pain very slowly subsiding.

"Mac, buddy, you alright? Did I hurt you?" I just look at him. I am breathing hard and there are tears in my eyes threatening to leak.

He walks towards me and puts his hand on my shoulder once again. He uses his other hand to lightly touch my side.

"Ah!" I gasp, still extremely painful.

He grabs my shirt. He pulls it up slowly, making sure not to hurt me anymore than he already did accidentally.

He pulls my shirt up, and sees my abused body. My whole abdomen is greenish, as if one huge bruise. He pulls more up, and sees my back. He pulls my shirt back down, barely moving. He's probably afraid that he will hurt me some more.

"Mac…" Bloo says, and I just inhale one huge breath. This is not how I wanted this to go. I did not want Bloo to find out like this.

"Bloo…" I say his name back, not knowing what to do.

"Mac, tell me what happened." He looks like he is going to cry.

"No." I say, bluntly.

"Mac." He repeats my name. I don't even feel like that is my name anymore.

"Bloo, drop it." I say forcefully, and he doesn't back off.

"No. Mac, tell me what happened." He says with more power in his voice.

"No, Bloo. You can't handle it." I say, and I back away.

"Yes I can, Mac. Just because I'm your imaginary friend doesn't mean that I can't help you once in a while. Just fucking tell me." He says, and I am shocked. He has never cussed at me before.

"Okay, Bloo." I pause for a second.

"Last night, my parents were fighting. My mom was drunk, like she has been getting for a few years, since before she married my step-father. I didn't want to hear it, so I came here during the night. Remember that Frankie, Herriman, and Madame Foster gave me a key to the place. Anyway, I decided to get ahead on some homework. After a while, I went back home and I decided to take a shower. When I went back to my room, my mother was sitting there. She had a knife in one hand, and my phone in the other. She also had a belt next to her. She read the journal on my phone where I admitted that I was gay, and she attacked me. She threw the knife at me, and it scraped my shoulder. She started whipping me all over my body. She kicked me, and then wrapped the belt around my neck trying to suffocate me. I decided to run over here. I got inside the house, and I collapsed. I woke up, and I took a shower to clean up. I hid outside, and I came back in when the newspaper arrived. Frankie told me you were up, but you were in the shower. I fell asleep in your bed until you woke me up. I had a nightmare about her chasing me with a knife." I say, and Bloo looks at me.

"Mac…" Bloo says, and looks into my eyes. He gets a serious face.

"Mac. Right now, you are going to get some sleep and I will be by your side the whole time. When you wake up, I will make you a grilled-cheese sandwich with some soup. After you eat, we will both go to Frankie and tell her exactly what you told me." Bloo says, and he is very serious.

"But-" He cuts me off.

"No buts, Mac. I am serious. You cannot hide this. You need help. We are going to Frankie afte, and that's final." He says, and is waiting for a response.

"Okay. I trust you, Bloo." I say, and he nods. He holds my hand, and we walk to his room. I lay down, and I look at him. He smiles at me, and I know it's going to be okay.

I drift off into sleep, now knowing that things will be alright.

**A/N:** **Alright, it looks like there will be only one chapter left, maybe two if I do some sort of epilogue. This isn't how Bloo was supposed to find out originally, but I like this much better. Also, don't forget to review!**


	4. I Am Home

**Disclaimer: I do not in ANY WAY own Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends**

**Warning: This story includes physical and emotional abuse of a young teen. **

**A/N: Hoping to finish this story very soon. Sorry if this goes too quickly. I just want it to be done. **

**Also, please review!**

"Mac…" Bloo says, and looks into my eyes. He gets a serious face.

"Mac. Right now, you are going to get some sleep and I will be by your side the whole time. When you wake up, I will make you a grilled-cheese sandwich with some soup. After you eat, we will both go to Frankie and tell her exactly what you told me." Bloo says, and he is very serious.

"But-" He cuts me off.

"No buts, Mac. I am serious. You cannot hide this. You need help. We are going to Frankie afte, and that's final." He says, and is waiting for a response.

"Okay. I trust you, Bloo." I say, and he nods. He holds my hand, and we walk to his room. I lay down, and I look at him. He smiles at me, and I know it's going to be okay.

I drift off into sleep, now knowing that things will be alright.

**What Lies Behind the Smile? (Chapter 4)-I Am Home**

"_I hate you all!" My mother screams at me, Frankie, Bloo, Herriman, and Madame Fosters. My ex-stepfather pukes over the cop handling him._

_The cops put them both into the car. My ex-stepfather then pukes over my mother and she screams. We all laugh as they drive away to the station, forever leaving me in the hands of my truest friends._

I wake up, smiling about the dream I had. I look over to my left, and Bloo is sitting there, reading a book.

"Since when do you like to read?" I asked him, and he looks at me.

"Hey Mac, did you sleep well?" He asks, setting the book down. I notice it's the book I read for class last year.

"I did, thank you. I had a very nice dream." I say, and then my stomach grumbles loudly. Bloo hears this and gets up. He walks over to me, and places a hand on my cheek.

"I'll be back in a few minutes with your grilled cheese and soup. I told Wilt that you were sick and need to stay in bed. He will make sure you don't leave." Bloo says and walks to the door.

"Oh yeah, that was the book you guys read last year in English class. You said it was really nice, so I decided to finally give it a go. It is a good book." Bloo says before leaving. He never ceases to amaze me.

So, now I'm gonna get some food. Then Bloo and I are going to Frankie and telling her exactly what happened.

What if I get taken away?

I don't want that to happen. I want to be adopted by Frankie. She's old enough to be my legal guardian, and she already is guardian (along with Madame Foster) to all these imaginary friends.

"I'm back!" Bloo says, and I see the soup is steaming. The grilled cheese smells fantastic. My stomach grumbles again.

Bloo sets up the tray for breakfast-in-bed and sets the food down. He puts a spoon and a few napkins down, as well as a sugar-free soda, and sits back down to read his book.

"Go on, Mac. Eat up." He says, and I happily do. Bloo occasionally glances at me to make sure I eat, and I finish in a few minutes. When I'm done, he puts everything on the tray, and sets it aside.

"Come on Mac, it's time." He says and he holds out his hand. I get out of the bed, and I take his hand with trust.

We walk to Mr. Herriman's old office, now belonging to Frankie. We walk in, and she sees us.

"Bloo, what did you do?" She asks, thinking that I brought him in so he doesn't get in trouble by lying.

"No, Frankie. This is serious. Let's go into your meeting room." Bloo says, and Frankie can sense that this isn't a joke. It's not a joke; it's my life.

"What's going on?" She asks, and I swallow hard.

"Mac has something to tell you, Frankie. Please listen to the whole thing." Bloo says, and rubs my hand. It's now or never.

"Last night, my parents were fighting. My mom was drunk, like she has been getting for a few years, since before she married my step-father. I didn't want to hear it, so I came here during the night. Remember that you, Herriman, and Madame Foster gave me a key to the place. Anyway, I decided to get ahead on some homework. After a while, I went back home and I decided to take a shower. When I went back to my room, my mother was sitting there. She had a knife in one hand, and my phone in the other. She also had a belt next to her. She read the journal on my phone where I admitted that I was gay, and she attacked me. She threw the knife at me, and it scraped my shoulder. She started whipping me all over my body. She kicked me, and then wrapped the belt around my neck trying to suffocate me. I decided to run over here. I got inside the house, and I collapsed. I woke up, and I took a shower to clean up. I hid outside, and I came back in when the newspaper arrived. You told me Bloo was up, but was in the shower. I fell asleep in Bloo's bed until he woke me up. I had a nightmare about her chasing me with a knife. We played games, and Bloo accidentally hurt me when he hugged me. He found out and made me tell him everything. He made me go to sleep, and made me breakfast when I woke up. Then we came here." I say, almost exactly what I told Bloo, except adding what happened after that point.

"Mac, I'm going to call the police." She says, but I stop her.

"Only if you will adopt me." I say, and she looks at me.

"Of course, Mac. You are already like a brother to me. I can adopt you. But we need to call the police." She says, and hugs me. I hug her back tightly, and I cry. She rubs my head.

"Don't worry, Mac. This is your home now." She says, and I smile.

She picks up the phone, and begins talking. I look at Bloo, and he holds my hand.

"You know, Mac. Now we really are brothers, and all the friend are your cousins now." He says, and I laugh.

I am home, with my family.

**A/N: So, one more chapter left. It will be an epilogue of sorts, but it won't be too fancy. Sorry if this chapter wasn't too good. I know it was extremely short. But still, I am a fan of this chapter. Also, don't forget to review!**


	5. Epilogue

**Disclaimer: I do not in ANY WAY own Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends**

**Warning: This story includes physical and emotional abuse of a young teen. **

**A/N: The last chapter! Sorry this and the last one were so short, but I didn't know what else to do. Still, I really did enjoy writing this story. I hope you all enjoyed it as well. **

**Also, please review!**

"Don't worry, Mac. This is your home now." She says, and I smile.I look at Bloo, and he holds my hand.

"You know, Mac. Now we really are brothers, and all the friend are your cousins now." He says, and I laugh.

I am home, with my family.

**What Lies Behind the Smile? (Chapter 5)-Epilogue**

"I'm home!" I shout when I come home. Today was a tough, but great day. I got an A on my Geometry test, got a perfect score on my English essay, and I think I might be getting a boyfriend soon!

"Hey, Mac!" Frankie says, and she hugs me. I hug her back, and she goes back to the work that she was doing.

I head up to mine and Bloo's room. Since I started living here for over a year and six months, Frankie gave Bloo and I our own room. I see Bloo there, reading another book. He has become quite the book-fancy since I started living here.

"Hey, Buddy!" Bloo says and hugs me. I hug him back and he asks how my day was.

"Did anything new happen with Carlos?" Bloo asks me, and I blush.

"Yup. He asked me to hang out and kissed me on my cheek. I'm getting ready to ask him out." I say, and Bloo raises his hand for a high-five. I give him one, and he puts his arm on my shoulder.

"That's great, Mac! I hope he's good. He better give you something for your fourteenth birthday next month." I push him playfully and we laugh.

"Time for homework!" I say and I take everything out on my bed.

"Actually, you're going to play with us." Eduardo says and enters, followed by Wilt and Coco.

"Okay! I could use some fun!" I say and we head to the Rec. Room. We set up the video game console, and we play a racing game.

"Yes!" I shout as I won. I finally got 1st place!

"Great job, Mac. You finally beat me. But you won't next time." Wilt says, as we play again.

This is it. This is how it should be. It's like what happened before never happened. I amhappy, and I am with my family. My real family.

I love them so much.

"You know guys, I love you all." I say and they look at me and smile.

"We love you too, Mac." They say, and we get back to the game.

I love them, and they love me back. We are all loved.

**THE END**

**A/N: Sorry for the totally predictable, but extremely cute, ending. I thought it would go great with how the last chapter ended. Anyway, I really hope you all enjoyed this story. I had a lot of fun writing it. Thank you for reading. Also, don't forget to review!**


End file.
